A number of patents have been granted for combination beach mats or towels and pillows wherein the components of the combination fold up into a carrying bag or into a compact unit for carrying. Examples of such patents include U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,375,111 (Hall); 2,451,142 (Zimmern); 2,659,404 (Kelsey); 2,626,648 (Anderson); 3,976,113 (Kim); and 3,052,895 (LoVico). The Hall patent describes a convertible beach mat which is lightweight and folds into a carrying bag. The mat includes a head portion which can be inflated to form a pillow, and a pocket for carrying smaller items. The Zimmern patent discloses a carrying bag, made of water proofed cloth, which converts into a blanket with an inflatable pillow. The bag also has an inner compartment for smaller articles. The Kelsey patent discloses a combination beach towel and bag, the towel being made of an elongated rectangular sheet of terry cloth, and the bag including inner pockets. The Anderson patent discloses a combination towel and beach bag with waterproof lining covering the toweling material. The Kim patent discloses a convertible blanket of rectangular shape which is folded to form a tote bag. Closure can be carried out using Velcro fasteners. The LoVico patent discloses a beach bag which can be opened into a blanket, and which contains inside pockets for maintaining articles in a dry condition.
Although the beach bag-towel combinations disclosed in these patents are useful and provide certain obvious advantages over ordinary beach towels and beach bags alone, they do not provide the particular advantages of the present invention discussed below.